Mimosa - Moving Flowers,Milan, Italy

Find out how LED exhibition lighting stole the show at the Milan furniture fair.

During the Milanfurniture fair

this spring, there was one exhibit at Superstudio Piu in via Tortona that was constantly surrounded by visitors. This was the Mimosa installation, designed by Londonbased Jason Bruges Studio, to showcase the possibilities of Philips’ Lumiblade OLEDs (organic LEDs).”

- Jason Bruges Studio for Philips Lumiblade

Customer challenge

The Milan furniture fair is an exciting event for anyone interested in interior design. The 2010 fair was the ideal opportunity for Philips to showcase a new product, Lumiblade OLEDs. London-based Jason Bruges studio used the technology to create an eye-catching exhibit.

The right lighting

The studio quickly came up with an inspiring idea for the exhibition. The slender Lumiblade OLEDs were used to create a display reminiscent of a field of flowers. Each of the 400 OLEDs was arranged to form petals which could move and change color. In its undisturbed state, they presented a flat, glowing surface. But when a visitor passed their hand overhead, the OLEDs reacted. The petals dimmed in color, and much like a mimosa plant would, they closed up defensively.

Bruges was keen to exploit the properties of Lumiblade OLEDs that appealed to him, and to do something playful with them. “As a designer,” he said, “what strikes you first of all is that they are very thin. They are a very nice thin simple light-emitting system. And they are something that you can control – there are 255 levels of brightness, and the mirrored surface gives an intense white that can be either warm or cold.”

In addition to their light-changing abilities, the OLEDs were also useful because of their lightweight construction. This meant that the OLEDs were easy to move, which gave Bruges the idea of creating an installation that could change in form.

The Mimosa display delighted all who saw it at the exhibition, and was constantly surrounded by visitors. Philips has since been approached by a number of organisations interested in displaying the piece.